Only Human
by TracyCook
Summary: A year has passed since what happened on the mountain. All the survivors have gone their separate ways. What will bring them all back together? What will happen when Emily and Jess reconnect in a way they never had before? Emily/Jess romance.


**Only Human**

By: Tracy Cook

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creators of Until Dawn.

Couple: Emily/Jess a side of Sam/Mike and Ashley/Chris

Rating: M

 **Chapter One**

 **We Are Broken**

 _ **'Rest.**_

 _ **You've seen too much. You don't have to fight anymore. '**_

 _'The sound of metal screeching and crashing filled her ears. Pale flesh ripped apart. Falling fast. Too fast. She was sure she was going to die. But, she welcomed plummeting to her death when the alternative was being ripped apart by one of those things. Those monsters that had dragged her into the elevator shaft._

 _She'd clawed at snow as it dragged her body. She'd heard him. Mike. His voice so clear. Screaming her name._

 _He'd come for her._

 _'Jessica! Jessica!'_

"Hey, Jessica." A voice dragged her out of her thoughts.

It didn't belong to Mike though, no, of course not. After everything that happened a year back they'd fallen apart. She'd barely managed to pull herself together after the death of Beth and Hannah. And then, that weekend trip had tarnished any last ounce of sanity she had left.

"Jess. Snap outta it."

"Uh, sorry." Jessica said with a wide toothy grin that disguised the anguish buried inside of her. It was her best friend and roomie at the dorm. A girl named Sasha. Nice girl. Most importantly she was someone outside of her original group of high school friends. "I was lost in thought."

"I could tell! You thinking about the hot guy sitting next to you." Sasha pointed her pen in the direction of the boy sitting next to her in the classroom.

"What!?" She glanced over at him and laughed a little, nudging her friend. "Shut up!"

Sasha didn't know anything about what had happened in the past. Jess had moved away from that town. Out to California where the sun was always shining and she could erase her past. Therapist said she suffered from PTSD. She figured it was just her mind's way of dealing with all the shit that had happened and honestly, she was thankful for it.

She didn't want to remember.

That was why she'd left Mike. She'd left them all. Cut off ties entirely in hopes of cutting that part of her life out altogether. It was never that simple, but it had been working for the most part. She'd even got a new number. None of them knew where she lived.

It was for the best.

This was her new life.

"I ain't judging you."

"He's not what I was thinking about!"

"Uh-huh."

Jessica prayed to God that the young man sitting beside them hadn't heard the conversation they were having. He was handsome, but she wasn't interested in starting a relationship and it was just embarrassing that her friend was being like this.

"You should focus on taking notes so you don't fail the next test like last time." Jess jabbed at her roommate, earning an over-exaggerated gasp from the girl.

Sasha was a pretty girl. Red hair that flowed down over her shoulders. Freckles painting pale cheeks. Big brown eyes. Petite. And as far as popularity went, she was one of the most popular girls attending the college. It was sort of crazy how Jessica had gone from the most popular group back in high school and homecoming queen only to continue that through college with a new group of kids.

 _'At least I'm not fat with like ten kids like half the popular girls from high school.'_ She thought.

Great. Now she was thinking about high school again.

Try as she might to rid herself of those days it just wasn't possible. Last time she was on Facebook she saw a message from Sam asking how she was doing. Where she was. Announcing that she was going to college to get a degree in Art or something. Her, Ashley, and Chris had all went to the same college. They were tight as ever.

Maybe she would have messaged Sam back if her profile picture wasn't with Mike. Because, that hurt. Seeing them together and happy, even if it was her fault for ending the relationship, caused her stomach to tangle in knots and her chest to tighten.

She didn't know what happened to Emily.

After Matt and Josh's funeral she left. Her Facebook activity hadn't changed in over a year. She couldn't imagine what the other girl was going through. Losing Matt like that. After he'd tried to save her. She'd broken down at the funeral. A side of Emily that the blonde had rarely seen and they'd been close friends all through high school.

Something about her had changed greatly.

And then, there was her. Jessica. Taking some fashion classes in California and hoping to design clothes.

"Alright, class. I'll see you all on Thursday." The teacher announced.

That was when she realized just how long she'd been lost in her thoughts. An hour had passed. Brow furrowed, blue eyes darted to the clock just to make sure. As if her teacher would be lying to them or something.

"What class you got next?" Sasha wondered. It was the beginning of the semester and they had all new classes and professors.

Pulling out her schedule, Jess looked it over and groaned. "Gross. College Algebra." A pout graced her full lips and the redhead started laughing at the poor girl.

"Sucks to be you, I got Painting I."

"I hate you."

"You love me."

"Shut up."

 _ **'I need to eat your wisdom and become secure again.**_

 _ **I need to regain and ascertain.'**_

"Yes. _I KNOW_ mom." The words dripped sarcastically off Emily's tongue as dark eyes rolled up into her skull. She could hear the woman bitching endlessly on the other side of the phone. It was really starting to irritate her. "I get it. You and dad are putting a lot of money into this college so I better pass my classes. Have I ever failed before? No."

She wanted so desperately to hang up on the incessant woman.

"Moooom. Please. Jesus shit, I know!"

Glancing up to the clock in the hallway she started down it, reading the classroom numbers in search of her first class. College Algebra. It was ridiculous she had to take this class at all. She should have tested higher. If she had been in the right head-space she would have. Her mother was convinced that because of everything that happened a year ago she wasn't going to pass her classes.

Emily hoped to prove her wrong, but truthfully, she might not make it.

Every single day was a struggle.

One she carried on her own shoulders and kept to herself.

"You know what? I'm gonna hang up on you now." Pulling her cellphone away from her ear, she swiped to end the call and stuffed it into the pocket of her tight five-hundred dollar skinny jeans. Her mother would call back a hundred times, but she had her phone on silent so it wouldn't be a big deal. She'd just ignore the bitch.

Finally, she found the classroom muttering a _"thank god,"_ under her breath and heading inside. Designer bag slung over her shoulder holding her books.

The good news about taking College Algebra was that it would be an easy A. Even after all of the traumatic events of the past she'd probably be capable of passing without blinking an eye. She'd taken harder classes in high school.

Walking into the classroom she instantly headed for the stairs, climbing up them and taking a seat in the back of the room. Bag slung over the back of her chair.

It was intimidating.

Not that she'd ever let anyone know that.

But, being somewhere new and all on her own. No friends. No family. Taking on the world and trying to make something of her life. It was terrifying.

Emily looked around the room. Observing the students who filed in through the door. Rating the boys on a scale of cute to fuckable and rating the girls on how much she hated them. That was when she spotted a young blonde that looked alarmingly familiar.

 _'It can't be her.'_ She internally shot down the idea. _'Fuck, that looks like Jess though.'_

Just seeing a girl who looked like Jessica was enough to spark a fire inside of her. Memories flooding back into her skull and drowning her. The blonde and her had been the best of friends. Even the prank they planned against Hannah that got her and her sister killed, it had been her friend "looking out" for her. Then come to find out the cunt was dating HER Mike. She'd been so pissed the entire trip.

Weeks before the trip even.

Knowing that Jess and Mike would be there hanging all over each other and shoving it down her throat that they were madly in love now.

By the end of the weekend, Emily had transformed into someone else. Sure, she was still the bitchy rich kid who talked trash and treated most people like shit. But, she understood how stupid it was to hate someone over a man.

Mike wasn't worth it.

And now, from what she'd heard, he was dating Sam? Really?

It wasn't worth fighting over. They all could have died. She still had a deep throbbing scar on her shoulder where the Wendigo had bit her. A constant reminder of that fact. Mike had held a fucking gun to her face and threatened to shoot her. Even if he couldn't do it. It was proof enough for her that he wasn't worth all the drama that went down that weekend.

And Matt...

She didn't like to think about it.

Emily continued to stare the blonde girl down. Brows knit together in concentration and eyes squinted slightly. Looked just like her. Down to the stupid braids.

 _'Holi-Cannoli that's really fucking freaky how much she looks like her.'_

Jessica was laughing and talking to a few of the kids in class that she knew from last semester. Couple of hot boys that had tried to get in her pants and a girl that reminded her a lot of Ashley.

"Oh my god. I'm totally gonna fail this class." The blonde whined, books held against her chest. She'd always been good at being pretty and fucking guys. Grades were another story. One that had an awful ending.

"You're gonna be fine."

"I'm here to design clothes not add."

"And I'm here on a football scholarship. We just have to-"

"-Em?"

"Wow. Rude, Jess." The boy was teasing and probably flirting with her, but she couldn't concentrate on that when her eyes were intensely locked on the woman sitting in the back of the room. Staring right back at her.

Looking equally baffled.

"Sorry. I uh-I'll be right back." Jessica announced, walking past him and scaling the stairs.

 _ **'I am only human, there's only so much I can retain.**_

 _ **I need to prove I am not insane.'**_

 _ **Author's Note : Hey y'all! Thank you for reading this first chapter and giving it a shot! Em and Jess are my favorite characters from Until Dawn and I wound up shipping them pretty hard! I have another idea for fic as well for these two before the whole Hannah/Beth thing, but I'm not even sure if anyone would be interested in reading this pairing! If y'all want more then please tell me what you think of this and yeah! Thank you all! 3**_


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